Rabbi volunteers as sheriff's chaplain

Rabbi Richard Yellin has seen robbery, domestic abuse and a drug bust from the passenger's seat of a squad car.

The rabbi for Temple Emeth, west of Delray Beach, said he can't think of a more useful way to spend his free time than as a chaplain for the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office.

"It's been in my system," said Yellin, 64, who lives west of Boynton Beach.

"I was a police chaplain for 16 years in Newton, Mass., and then I went to Israel from 1992 to 1998, where I participated in the Civilian Guard," Yellin said. "I've always had an interest in serving and upholding the well-being of the community."

Palm Beach County Commissioner Burt Aaronson approached Yellin after a service at Temple Emeth and asked if he would be interested in joining the program.

"There were always chaplains in some capacity or another," said Jeff Lindskoog, captain of the volunteer service unit. "There became an issue of rising crime and youth crime, and we needed clergy to help us."

The office found standards developed by the International Law Enforcement of Chaplains and used them to start the Law Enforcement Volunteer Chaplain Unit in summer 2006, Lindskoog said.

Six chaplains have been inducted into the unit, most of them in the northern part of the county. The office wants to expand the unit to 15 or 20, with various religious affiliations represented, Lindskoog said.

Volunteers must be active clergy, ordained or recognized by an accepted religious organization and show proof and certification. They must have letters of recommendation from respected members of the community.

A clergy member is on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and each volunteer must serve a minimum of eight hours a month in a ride-along with a sheriff's deputy.

"One time we were riding, and there was a burglary at [a] church. It was the first incident of the evening," Yellin said. "I went with the police officer and met two pastors that told us they were robbed.

"They couldn't believe that the Sheriff's Office sent a chaplain to help deal with the trauma they were having."

The chaplain unit was not formed to deal strictly with victims or even suspects, Lindskoog said. It also assists law enforcement.

"No one realizes that deputies are human beings; they are people, too," Lindskoog said. "They suffer through tragedy and emotional hard times. It's tough on the emotional psyche when you get involved in these heinous crimes - as a victim or an officer.

"Law enforcement officers need people they can trust, and we hope the clergy in time can establish themselves as someone to go to," he said.

Yellin rode with Deputy Sean Flynn on a late-night shift in District 4, which covers neighborhoods west of Delray Beach to Boynton Beach.

"He helped an individual who was a victim of domestic battery. He not only talked to them but also to the suspect," Flynn said. "It really made it a lot easier for us to do our job in a situation where the emotions can rise to the point where physical restraint is necessary."

Yellin said the experience has been a wake-up call.

"I never thought twice about the communities I would drive by and had no idea the source of aggravation and fear that is present," he said. "The blinders are now off."

INFORMATIONAL BOX:

To get involved

To join the Law Enforcement Volunteer Chaplain Unit of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, contact Capt. Jeff